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At Sandals Church, our vision is to be real with ourselves, God and others. This channel features sermons and teaching from Pastor Matt Brown and other members of the Sandals Church preaching team. You can find sermon notes, videos and more content at http://sandalschurch.com/watch
Welcome to the Sandals Church podcast. My name is Celeste, I am part of the team here at Sandals Church. We are so glad to have you join us today as we listen to this message with pastor Fredo Ramos teaching from our Gospel of Matthew series. If you enjoy our content, consider leaving us a rating to help this podcast reach more people. Now let's get into the message.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Have you ever had a moment where you asked yourself, am I crazy? Like, do I actually think that what I believe in is true? Like, Jesus, are you actually real? And has that moment ever turned into a day? That day turned into a week?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:That week turned into a month? And that month, for some of us, turned into a year? The reason why I ask that is because questions and doubts are inevitable in our lives. Listen, everybody will have doubts. Doubt is inevitable.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So if you haven't doubted yet, I got news for you today. You got a blind date with doubt coming soon and they're a bit uglier than you thought and it's gonna be more awkward than you could imagine. But I share that because to be a Christian, to be a disciple of Jesus means that at some point in your life, you're gonna find yourself living in this tension between what you expect God to do and what you experience him actually doing in your life. So that you might find yourself saying something like this, God, would expect it by now because I've been pure, because I've been obedient, that I would have been married. Some of you have said that.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Or God, would have expected by now that because of my trust in you and because of my praying that you would have saved my parents' marriage. You would have saved my marriage. God would have expected by now you would have made my children well. I expect by now God you would have asked like provided something for me. I go to church.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:I serve on a team. I I'm in a group. I'm doing all of the right things. Yet you find yourself living in this kind of gap where what you expect of God is not what you're experiencing from him. And that very gap oftentimes is the precise place where our questions and our doubts begin to rise.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And listen, no one can avoid this. But what if that's not a bad thing? What if the faith that we long to have and the life you long to experience following Jesus, for it to be real, actually requires you to go on this kind of journey? Meaning, there is no road to spiritual maturity that does not walk straight through doubt. So I'm here to tell you today that if you got questions, good.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:You are in the right place. Sandals Church is a place where you can ask questions. If you've been wrestling with doubt for a long time, we are so glad that you are here. We are a community that is honest enough to also wrestle with you in those same kinds of doubts. If you've been holding on to something for a while and you're like, God, why haven't you moved in my life?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:There's a good word for you today. So wherever you might find yourself, I want us to be open to what God might say to us from Matthew chapter 11 as we continue in our series of the gospel of Matthew. So if you got a bible, can join me there. Matthew 11 starting in verse one. And I'm gonna ask that wherever you are at today, wherever you might be watching this, whatever doubts or questions you might be holding, would you just in this next gentle moment offer those before God and ask him to help you listen to what he might say to you.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:One of the ways that we do that is actually by standing. So I'm gonna ask that if you are willing and able that you stand with us for the reading of God's word, and then I will pray for us. Matthew writes this, when Jesus had finished giving these instructions to his 12 disciples, he went out to teach and preach in towns throughout the region. John the Baptist who was in prison heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, are you the Messiah we've been expecting or should we keep looking for someone else?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Jesus told them, go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen. The blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the good news is preached to the poor. And he added, God blesses those who do not fall away because of me. As John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began talking about him to the crowds. What kind of man did you go into the wilderness to see?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Was he a weak reed swayed by every breath of wind? Or were you expecting to see a man dressed in expensive clothes? No. People with expensive clothes live in palaces. Were you looking for a prophet?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Yes. And he is more than a prophet. John is the man to whom the scriptures refer when they say, look I am sending my messenger ahead of you and he will prepare your way before you. I tell you the truth of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist. Yet even the least person in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now, the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing and violent people are attacking it. For before John came, all the prophets and the law of Moses looked forward to this present time. And if you are willing to accept what I say, he is Elijah, the one the prophet said would come. Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand. To what can I compare this generation?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:It's like children playing a game in the public square. They complain to their friends, we played wedding songs and you didn't dance. So we played funeral songs and you didn't mourn. For John didn't spend his time eating and drinking and you say he's possessed by a demon. The son of man on the other hand feasts and drinks and you say he's a glutton and a drunkard and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:But wisdom is shown to be right by its results. That's a lot to take in. This is God's word though, let's pray together. Heavenly father, as we have gathered in this moment, we pause in prayer to acknowledge that you have gathered with us too. And Lord, we are glad you're here.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:You're amongst us amongst us. And so we ask now that as Jesus said, you would give us ears to hear and eyes to see so that we might become all that you desire us to be in him. We pray these things in Christ's name. Amen. Thank you so much.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:You can have a seat. Which for a lot of you after 19 verses, I'm sure feels good. As you heard, there's quite a bit going on in this passage. We got drunks, we got gluttons, we got kids singing wedding songs, we got men in the wilderness, we got a Herod, right? We got all kinds of stuff going on and it's easy to kinda get lost in what's happening, but what I don't want you to miss is that profound question in the beginning from John the Baptist.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Are you the one that we should be expecting? John's in a crisis, a crisis of faith, a crisis of doubt, a crisis, listen now, that all of us at some point will also enter into. Where he is living in that tension that we talked about, where what he's expecting from God is not what he's experiencing in his life. What do we do in a moment like that? What I wanna do to help us understand what's going on here is just kinda walk verse by verse through this passage, explain some things, make some observations, be somewhat humorous, you know, and then offer a few thoughts that I think God specifically wants to say to Sandals Church.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And so if you're down with that, let's jump in together. Look there at verse one, when Jesus had finished giving these instructions. And what Matthew's doing is simply saying after Matthew 10 comes 11. It's a great insight. Right?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:But he said he's simply saying, listen, Jesus has commissioned the 12, his closest disciples. You're gonna go out. You're gonna live on mission. You're preach the good news that I've been preaching. I've empowered you to do this.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:We've been talking about that over the last several weeks. But then we're told Jesus likewise goes out and teaches and preaches in towns, which is another perfect reminder that Jesus never calls any one of us to do something that he himself won't do. It's why he's brilliant. It's why he's worth you following him. But notice there in verse two, John the Baptist who was in prison, we'll come back to that, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, are you the Messiah we've been expecting or should we keep looking for someone else? Let's pause there. John in prison. What happened? Remember, this is John the Baptist, the one who had a national following.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:The the the kind of bizarre wild one in the wilderness who didn't dress well, he ate bugs, he's now in jail. What happened? Well, at some point in his life, John the Baptist spoke out against Herod. Now Herod at this time was the ruler that the Roman Empire had put in place to govern Israel. He's Israel's king.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And John spoke out against Herod. Why would he do that? Well, because Herod had a brother who was married and Herod took interest in his own brother's wife to the point that he began an affair with her, divorced his current wife, and remarried his brother's sister. And some of y'all think you got family drama. So John speaks out against this.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Gets thrown in jail for it. And as you can imagine, is sitting there looking at what Jesus is doing, hearing the reports. And now he's like, where's Jesus for me? I hear what the messiah is doing, but I'm in prison. Don't don't miss this.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:The the irony here is heavy. John the Baptist is having doubts y'all. And when I say John the Baptist, I mean John the one who when he was a baby left in his mother's womb when Mary pregnant with Jesus at the time walked into the room. That's crazy to think about. This is John the Baptist, the one who had a calling on his life years before he was born.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:He was filled with the holy spirit as a baby. Can that be said of us? This is John the Baptist who was in the Jordan River baptizing Jesus as what? The one, the Messiah who heard himself the audible voice of the father from heaven say, this is my beloved son with whom I am well pleased. This is John the Baptist who when he saw Jesus approaching told the crowds, behold, look, this is the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:This is John the Baptist who when his popularity was decreasing told his disciples it's okay. He must increase, I must decrease. Yo, go follow him. This is not about me. That John the Baptist is doubting.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:What makes you think you won't have questions in your own Christian life?
Celeste Contreras:What
Pastor Fredo Ramos:makes you think you're so certain? Now at this moment, John, for whatever reason, it's not explicitly stated by Matthew, but I think we can imply it from the text, that for whatever reason, Jesus is not meeting John's expectations. Jesus, you're out there doing all this miraculous stuff, but what about me? You ever been there before? God, how come you're doing all of these things for other people?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:I I see them, and let's be honest, they're not even a good Christian like I am. And you seem to be meeting their requests quickly, and I've been praying about this for years. Why am I stuck in prison? A lot of us can relate with John the Baptist right here in this moment, thinking this is not fair. Have you forgotten about me?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Like Jesus, are you actually the one? And notice Jesus' response. Verse four, go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen. The blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured. The deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Now pause. Here's the problem with Jesus' response. John already knows all of this. So it's almost as if Jesus' answer is not given to kinda persuade John out of his doubt. It's almost as if he's telling him in that in a way to make him wrestle with it more.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Don't miss that. Why do I say that? Because, well, Jesus is a rabbi. John's a prophet. Meaning, both of these men would have memorized the entire old testament, which is a wild thing for you and I to think about given the fact that we live in a day and age where our children know how to chat GBT something.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Right? And what Jesus is doing is quoting from Isaiah 61 that reads like this, the spirit of the Lord is upon me to bring good news, to heal the sick, to give sight to the blind, to give hearing to those who are deaf. And listen, I think Jesus intentionally misses out a phrase, to set the captives free. Amen. So Jesus intentionally gives John an answer by leaving out a phrase almost as if to say to John, brother, you know who I am.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:You know what I've come to do, but I am not coming to set you free. I am the Messiah, but I am not the Messiah you expected, but I am the Messiah you needed most. And this is the challenge for all of us when it comes to our discipleship journeys with Jesus. If we're willing to be honest in here today, you will have to come to terms with the fact that Jesus oftentimes is not what you have expected, but he is what you have needed most in your life. But he will meet those needs not on your timing.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Amen. On his own. This is a mysterious part of following him as the great teacher and rabbi and savior that he is. You will have to surrender aspects. And notice this blessing that's in the middle of this very strange passage.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Verse six, it says, and he added God blesses those who don't fall away because of me. Your translations might read, blessed are those who do not stumble on account of me. One person put it like this that I really love. Happy are those who don't throw away their faith because Jesus isn't what I was expecting. I really like that idea.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:There's a blessing here for all of us. Happy are you. Makarios is the word in Greek. Celebrate you. Cheers to you.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:If you don't stumble, if you don't fall away because I wasn't what you were expecting. This is the final word quite possibly that Jesus gives to John, who was his cousin by the way. Because at this moment quite possibly these are the last things John ever hears Jesus say to him. What we come to find out later on in the same gospel is that John never got out of prison. In fact, he died in prison.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:You wanna know how he died? There was a Roman party that took place and at this party, a young woman danced provocatively in front of Herod, seduced him so much that he said, whatever you want, I'll give to you. And she said, I want the head of John the Baptist. And Herod, reluctantly, because he knew John was a prophet, the people loved him, Herod's about popularity and status, reluctantly had John killed. This great prophet, his head was on a platter.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:This is a sobering word for all of us that many of us will die with our questions unanswered from Jesus. And I say that heavily and I also say it like honestly, this sounds like a great talk. Right? Aren't you glad you come to church today? But there's a word for us there.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:It is possible to follow Jesus with not every question being answered and to still find life. The story continues. Verse seven, as John's disciples were leaving, Jesus began to talk about him to the crowd. So essentially Jesus goes from talking to John indirectly to now talking about John to the crowds. Notice what he says, what kind of man did you go into the wilderness to see?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Was he a weak reed swayed by every breath of wind? This was a phrase back to remember the geography of Israel. They would have seen reeds all day being swayed in the wind by the land. They would have known what this meant. This is Jesus' way of saying John was not a weak person.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:In other words, he didn't change his opinion or his viewpoints based on popularity or status. He was an honorable man. This is what I absolutely love about Jesus. Even though John was doubting, Jesus still publicly honors the man. Still gives him his due and he will do that for you and I.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:If you have questions today, Jesus honors your questions. If you have doubts today, Jesus honors your doubts. If you are hurt today because you have feel as though God has not met your expectations, Jesus honors you still. The same way that he does John the Baptist here in this passage. He says, were you expecting to see a man dressed in expensive clothes?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:No. Like, we did not go to see John because he was gonna give us fashion advice. It's not why we went out there. Were you looking for a prophet? Jesus asked.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Yes. And he is more than a prophet. He's, excuse me, more than a prophet. So this is a moment in his teaching where Jesus is doing a bit of comparing and contrasting. He's contrasting the honor and respect and loyalty of John the Baptist, comparing that to Herod who on his very coin had a reed on the back that would have been swaying in the wind.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So he's saying, man, this is an honorable man. Not only that, he was a prophet. And then he goes on there, verse 10. This is the man of whom the scriptures referred to. Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you and he will prepare your way before you.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:It's a quote from Malachi four in which we're told that there will be a prophet coming to prepare the way for the Messiah. And this prophet is unique one because he's the final last prophet of that era. And many believed according to Malachi's prophecy that he would come in the spirit of Elijah. Now if you know your old testament, if you don't, you're totally okay. We're Sandals Church, we're figuring things out altogether.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Elijah was a prophet, one of the greatest prophets to ever live for Israel and he never died. And so the belief was Elijah would come back and he would be the final prophet preparing the world for the Messiah, then the Messiah would come. Jesus is saying, yo, read your bibles. This is Elijah. He's that great of a guy.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Verse 11, I tell you the truth, all who have ever lived, none is greater than John the Baptist, yet even the least person in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he is. That almost feels like an insult. Like is Jesus saying, I could be the worst Christian and I'm better than John? But what he's doing, this is a teaching kind of tool. He's simply comparing something.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Not good and bad like John and Herod, but now he's comparing good and better. In other words, what Jesus is saying is the era of John has ended and a new era has come. And there's implications for that era. Verse 12, and from the time John the Baptist began preaching until now the kingdom of heaven has been forcefully advancing and violent people are attacking it. In other words, God's agenda has continued to move forward.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:His kingdom has continued to come regardless of what people expect, want, or what they even do in violence against it. His kingdom will come. That was true from the very beginning. It's continuing to be true today. And then verse 13, for before John came, all the prophets in the law of Moses looked forward to this present time.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:In other words, the old testament people longed to see what John saw. Longed to see what they saw, which is what? The Messiah was now here. Verse 14, don't miss this. If you are willing to accept what I say, he is Elijah, the one prophet said would come.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Verse 15, anyone with ears to hear, in other words, that Jesus' way of saying, listen up, pay attention, should listen and understand what I'm saying to you. Long story short, John was the end of one era, Jesus is the beginning of anew, and Jesus is implying this. If in fact John was Elijah, what does that make me? He's answering John's origin original question, are you the Messiah? And he's saying, yes, he is.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Now, you might think he's being a bit coy or subliminal. But this is the way Jesus oftentimes works, which I find to be so brilliant. Because if he just comes out and says, yes, I'm the Messiah, that's a threat to Rome. That's a threat to the power structures. And that throws him off from his mission.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Don't miss that. What I love about Jesus is that he was never in a rush to prove his existence to anybody. And he will not be in a rush for you and I. Like, he he never went out of his way to try to validate who he was in front of people. Why?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Because he was secure in his identity. I am the beloved son. He was secure in his mission from God. He knew it was what he had to do. Right?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:He didn't play the games that you and I play with each other, where we constantly live to validate our existence before other people. Jesus has very little time and was never in a rush to prove anything to anyone. Oh, man. Imagine a life that secure, that free, where you're never in a rush to prove anything to anyone. Why?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Because you know who you are. You know who you are. And that's what we get to experience from that. We're almost done. Verse 16, to what can I compare this generation?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Jesus kinda digs a little bit further on us. He's gonna call us childish. It's like children playing a game in the public square. They complain to their friends, we played wedding songs and you didn't dance. So we played funeral songs and you didn't mourn.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Like you don't like whatever song Spotify is spitting out according to Jesus. For John didn't spend his time eating and drinking and you say he's possessed by a demon. So in other words, he lived with constraint, lived on his own and the people were like that man's a demon. Then Jesus said, the son of man came on the other hand feasts and drinks and you say he's a glutton and a drunk. Like Jesus saying, yo, I came and I got down and you're saying you got an issue with me.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:As if to say, no matter what God does, it's never enough for us, isn't it? He goes on to add though, but wisdom is shown to be right by its results. In other words, the kingdom of God will come and when it finally comes, it will all make sense. And all of our expectations will cease. And there'll be little for us to say.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And I love that Jesus gives us this kind of picture of children playing. It's a parable they would have understood. Remember they live in a marketplace, both weddings and funerals would have gone on for many days. And so, if you're a kid, you sometimes don't know if you're at a wedding or a funeral, like maybe there's some partying, but oftentimes kids are gonna play regardless. Right?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:At either event, they're gonna find ways to play. And so what is happening here is they're imagining a scenario where kids are playing pretend. And they're like, alright. Well, let's pretend we're at a wedding, but they don't wanna dance. Okay.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Well, let's pretend we're at a funeral, but they don't wanna mourn. You know, this kind of story reminds me of what it's like for me as a dad to be driving my children in the car. And, when it's not my turn to listen to the new Clips album or something else that I wanna hear, they get to choose a song. But this never ends well, y'all. Kids are never happy.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Because what I come to realize is that it's never about them hearing the song that they want to hear, it's about them having the control to choose the song they want to hear. Yes. That's Jesus' point. We, at the end of the day, long to have control. And and if we're willing to be honest, that's what's at the root of a lot of our questions.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:I want certainty. I want control. God, I want you to be the Messiah. Yes. But on my timing.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And the the challenge is if you wanna mature, if you wanna become the kind of person I know you long to become, it's gonna require you to embrace the mystery and the timing of God, to lean into it. And this is how I think you begin to to kinda work its way out in our lives. Let's zoom out of the text now. You're in your seats. We're here in Sandals Church.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Let's just think about what this looks like for us. First, I want you to notice Jesus does not rebuke John for his doubt. Never rebuked him once. In fact, his language towards John was very gracious. Notice in verse six, he didn't say, blessed are you when you never doubt.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:No. As if to communicate to us, faith and doubt have an equal role together in the life of the disciple. There is space, freedom, and permission to have questions today. There's room for you right now in your journey of faith to have a question for God. He's not bothered by your questions.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:He's not hurt by them. And so rather, first, I want us to begin to imagine that actually faith and doubt are companions on my journey of following Jesus. So the opposite of faith isn't doubt. It really isn't. It's something else altogether.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And I love what Tim Keller said in his his book, this isn't the reason for God. And he often preached about this. Man, Tim Keller was brilliant. But he would say that doubts don't mean that you've been thinking too much about something, but that you've been thinking too little about it. So keep going.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Keep questioning. Keep searching the truth. In other words, your doubts don't have to be a cliff that you fall off of, but they can become a bridge that takes you through a path that wasn't there so that you make it the other side of your faith journey. Listen, if you are in here doubting today, it does not make you a bad Christian. It makes you a thinking one.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:If you are questioning today, it doesn't mean that you have failed as a Christian. It makes you an honest one. It makes you a human one, which is why I love in Jude that short little book before we get to the crazy one, Revelation. You read this, Jude, verse 22, be merciful with those who doubt. Be merciful with those who doubt.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:In other words, give yourself grace today if you got questions. And give other people today grace if they have questions. Be merciful. Be compassionate with people who have questions. And now I wish I could stand here and tell you that I, as a Christian, used to doubt that, you know, I've grown up and I'm beyond all of that.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And if you buy my book, I'll give you the keys to how to do it too. But that's just simply not the case. For whatever reason, I feel this text deep down in my own heart, my own soul, and my own mind. And I wonder, I've been thinking about this this week, I wonder if it's because there are two specific things that I've been praying for over the course of my Christian life that for whatever reason God has not answered. Now at this moment, I'm I don't feel like I'm ready yet to name those two things in this kind of setting, but there have been two specific things that relates to my family that I have begged God for over the years.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And I mean like begged y'all. And for whatever reason he has not met me there. And like John, I've seen him do it for everyone else. It's not that I don't believe, it's not that I haven't prayed, it's not that I don't have faith, but for whatever reason God has not met my expectation there. And so there's something about even now as a Christian for nearly two decades where I'm still wrestling with doubt.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Like Psalm 13 says, Lord, how long will you forgive me? Forever? How long? Look at how long will you look the other way? I I'm at home in Psalm 13, y'all.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:I don't know about some of you and and the things that you have that you've been praying about, but I live in Psalm 13 oftentimes because a man who in this current moment still has questions. But here's what I don't want you to miss. The psalmist and John, they doubt in the direction of prayer to God. They doubt in the direction of prayer. The psalmist says, how long, oh lord?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So he doesn't take his doubts away from God, he takes his doubts towards God. John the Baptist, when he has questions, he takes his questions to who? To Jesus. So listen to me. Doubt in the direction of Jesus.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Doubt in the direction that you need to go. Where are your doubts taking you right now? Where are your questions taking you? Because whether you realize it or not, your questions in this moment are taking you somewhere. Do you know where they are taking you?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So to the young people out there, to the people who have real questions about how to do this or what happens when this happens, doubt in the direction of Jesus. Be careful about where you take your questions because where you take your questions really matters. If you got questions about God, my invitation is to bring those questions to the people of God. You got questions about the church, bring those questions to church. Doubt in the direction towards life.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And I guarantee it will be a much different outcome. Jesus also says, go and tell John what you have heard and seen. Notice that. The works and the words of Jesus matter to us in seasons when we have questions. When you are struggling with your faith, go back and read scripture, read the gospels.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:This is why I'm a big proponent of reading the gospels every single day. Read the gospels every day. I don't know what your reading plan looks like or how well you're at it or like kinda what journey you're on right now. But my recommendation to you would be to read the gospels every day because you need to be reminded of both the works and the words of Jesus especially when you have questions. Process through them.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Ask those questions. Doubt in the direction of scripture and listen to what Jesus has said. And lean, you know, if you came into church today and you barely have enough faith, borrow the faith from other people. Borrow the voices of other people lifting praise to God. If you're sitting there wondering like why don't I feel or or sense what they all do?
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Borrow it from them. Doubt in the direction of the community of faith. Doubt in the direction of scripture. And I share that because maybe some of you, if you're being honest in here, like, you don't know how to read the bible. And that's okay too.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Because in fact, in in about a week or so, I'm gonna be doing a study online that's for people like you. We got questions about the bible. We got questions about how to read the bible. This is a big passion of mine, and I can't wait to start this. I know this feels like a shameless plug in the middle of a heartfelt sermon, but I don't care.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So next week, you know, plan about how to make that better. There's just no easy way to land the plane. We're doing an online study for everyone at Sandals Church to help them learn how to approach scripture in a way that actually forms them. So bring your questions. We'd love to have you there.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Alright. End of commercial. Secondly, be attentive not just to doubting in direction, but realize that if you don't learn where your doubts are taking you, they will grow into something else. Meaning this, our doubts, your doubts will become unbelief when you begin to demand control. What will start to happen.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Your doubts will morph not into maturity but into a kind of unbelief. Meaning, the opposite of faith is not doubt. The opposite of faith is unbelief. You see, doubt is kind of a struggling to believe, like you're searching. You're it's a struggle to believe it.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Doubt I'm sorry. Unbelief is a stubbornness, a refusal to believe what you know you need to. Those are two different things. And if you don't become aware of the direction that you are doubting today or have questions today, you it's going to morph into a kind of refusal to believe and unbelief. Notice there in verse 18 where we're told, John came eating, not eating and drinking and you said he had a demon.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Then Jesus came, the son of man came doing plenty of all that and you said he was a glutton and a drunkard. In other words, the people of God came to a point where it wasn't so much that God wasn't doing enough, but it was that they wanted him to do it in their way. In their timing. They wanted control. And perhaps what you've been wrestling with in your own life right now is that you've wanted control.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And that's not to dismiss your feelings, your questions, your doubts, but it's just to get you to acknowledge that perhaps what you need to confess today is you are trying to control God. He will not be controlled. Oh, you want the wedding song? But you're not gonna dance. Even though you're single, there's a pretty girl on the floor, you should probably get out there and dance with her.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:You won't do it. Oh, you want the funeral song? But you won't grieve. You see, you can't in other words, Jesus said, you cannot control God's timing, God's mystery. And unfortunately, if you don't become aware of the way that your questions are beginning to calcify and become unbelief, you're you're gonna be you're gonna miss out on on everything that Jesus is doing in your life.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:You're gonna miss out. But in light of that, I'm so glad that Jesus does not leave us in that kind of place. I don't know about you, but I am grateful that we serve a patient God who longs to meet us in our questions. We serve a God who longs to explore and wrestle with us to the point that he can actually offer us hope. Your doubt can have hope.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Why? Not because of certainty and control. No. No. No.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:It's not so much that your questions need better answers or better explanations. Your questions need a person. Your questions need the person of Jesus. So lastly, meditate with this or, on this with me. My doubts find hope, not uncertainty or control, but in Christ.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:In Christ. Let's think practically. Every single day, you exercise trust or faith in things that you are not completely certain of. Like today, I got in my car, not a 100% certain that my car would work, tires would be filled, the engine would be fine, but I drove on some level of faith that I would make it here today. I shoot.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:I came with enough, you know, trust and faith that y'all were gonna kinda like what I had to say. Am I a 100% certain of it? No. But we we all exercise. When you just think about your everyday life, you exercise on a level of trust and faith that does not require you to have a 100% certainty.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:If that's true on that level, how much more true does that have to be when it comes to you relating to God? Right? So you need to get out of this kind of idea that you need to be a 100% certain that things are gonna work out. You can't live life like that. No one lives life like that if they're being honest.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Right? I love the wisdom of John Orpberg when he says faith is an exercise in strategic uncertainty. Think about that, strategic uncertainty. Meaning there is a level of uncertainty in all of our lives, but Christians are strategically saying that amongst all of that uncertainty, you should place your faith in Jesus. He's worthy of it.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:He's worthy of it. Which means then that the end goal of your life is not to be free of doubt, but in the midst of that, to be full of trust. That's what we're after. Well, we're not so worried about, you know, control or certainty, but we're learning to operate with trust still. Like fourteen years ago, the day I got married, stood before God, my pastor at the time, our family and friends, and of course Ashley.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:When I said I do, did I have a 100% certainty that I would keep my word? No. But I was a 100% committed to keeping my word. Life is unpredictable. And anyone who tells you they got a 100% certainty when they do something, they're lying.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:They are lying, friends. So so dismiss, like, let go of uncertainty and and learn to walk in faith. And and watch, God will find ways to meet you where you're at. There's a beautiful passage, we're gonna close with this from John 20 where you might be familiar with the man the disciple has referred to as doubting Thomas. Doubting Thomas.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:John 20, Jesus has resurrected. Now notice what the text says. Now Thomas, also known as Didymus, thank God that's not the name we know him as, one of the 12 was not with the disciples when Jesus came. He wasn't with them. He didn't see Jesus resurrected.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So the other disciples told him, we have seen the Lord. But he said to them, unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were and put my hand into his side, I will not believe. This guy's pretty clear on what he needs. His expectations are clear. A week later his disciples were in the house again and Thomas was with them.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Though the doors were locked, Jesus came, stood among them and said peace be with you. Notice that Jesus didn't magically walk in, lock doors and say, where's Thomas? I got a word for you Thomas. Peace. To you and your questions today, peace.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:There's peace for you. To whatever you're wrestling with, there's peace for you. And then he proceeds to say this, put your finger here, see my hands, reach out your hand, put it in my side. And then he's real direct, stop doubting and belief. Notice Thomas' response.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:He didn't say, oh wow, now I could theolog like theologically have all the right answers and believe you are my lord and savior. He says, my lord and my god. He worships. He worships. He adores.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:He's the first person in the Gospel of John amongst the disciples to call Jesus God. Notice when that happens. Not before he doubted, but because he learned to wrestle with his doubts. You get on the other side of doubting, wrestling with your questions, a more beautiful, profound image of Jesus. Where you're left, not with all the right answers for the test, but you're left with worship.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:You're left with adoration. You're left with a desire that says, my Lord, my God, I trust you. I trust you. And I share this because look at this image. This is known as the incredulity of of Saint Thomas.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So this is a painting done in seventeenth century and, the first thing that grabs my attention, because I'm just like that, is all these men look too old to be disciples. And it looks like Thomas, you know, Dowding did a number on Thomas. But what what I also notice Some of y'all get that later. But what I also notice is they're all focused on something. And you know, however you relate to art and painting, here here's what captivates me.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:They are present to Jesus who is present to them as they wrestle with their questions. Think about this actual moment in history. This is not a made up story. Jesus lives today y'all, which is why you are here. Which means in this moment when they are, you know, putting their fingers in the side, they're getting brand new categories for a resurrected life.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:They've never seen someone come back to life in this particular way. This is brand new for them, Which is why I say to you, Jesus will oftentimes not be the savior that you expected, but he will be the one that you needed. I love that for Thomas, Jesus in his timing, not Thomas's, decides to show up and meet him gently with his own hands, with his own presence, then it leads to worship. And I share this because as someone who goes on the journey of faith and doubting together, this is the invitation for all of us. I came to Jesus at the age of 21.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:I'll be 40 next year, which means I would have been following Jesus for almost twenty years. The night I came to faith, was weeping in my old room, laying on a love sack, just confronted with my sin and the beauty of the gospel. And for whatever reason, I woke up the next day a 100% certain that I was in the army of God. A 100% certain that God was gonna deliver me, that that God was going to set me on a track. I was so certain y'all as a 21 year old Christian, I put a bible in my back pocket.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And I went to the Tyler Mall, I started sharing my faith. Twenty years later, I am far less certain than I was at 21, but my faith is deeper. Why? Because I am learning every day to see faith and doubt as companions on my journey of being a disciple. Knowing that what Fredo needs in his heart is not a better explanation, but a better encounter with the risen savior who longs to meet me.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:And guess what? He longs to meet you too. And so as we close, I want us to actually just to kinda create space in our time of prayer to give you a moment where you can be honest with your doubts. We're at Sandals Church. We are real about everything.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Even our questions. And so as we go to prayer, would you take a moment and just offer to God and say, Lord, here's actually a question. And if I'm being honest, this question has almost even led me to a place of disobedience, Where this doubt has kinda led me to a place where I don't fully trust you. I trust you on paper. But but in my heart of hearts, the doors are closed and no one is around, I don't trust you.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:In fact, sometimes I don't like you. So we're gonna take a moment of prayer. And wherever you're at in your season of life, in in your journey of following Jesus, I wanna invite you to hold before God your questions, your doubts, maybe the questions of other people. And just say, God, would you meet them in your timing and in your love? Let's pray together.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:God, we ask now the power of your holy spirit that you would meet us in our questions. You would meet us in our doubts. And that you would lead us to a place of honesty where we could be real and name the lingering concerns and expectations and the longings we have for you in our lives. And would you help us in your love and in your timing to see you as the one who maybe we haven't expected, but you are in fact the one we need most. Lead us there.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:Help us to follow you. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Amen. I wanna take a quick moment to say thank you for all of you who are watching from ever from wherever you are watching us.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:We are so glad that you joined us for service today. I wanna let you know that this journey is a journey that we go on together, even for those of you who maybe watch online or from a faraway place like Neverland. We wanna know who you are. We wanna know your story. And we more importantly, today we wanna know what your doubts are.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:So as we encourage you to walk by faith this week, would you reach out to us? Let us know who you are. You can email us at online at sandals church dot com. Myself, my team would love to meet you and hear your story and help you get more connected into our journey of following Jesus together here at Sandals Church. And also for many of you who are blessed by, the sermon or the words that we, give and the other things that we produce here at Sandals Church, would you now pray about ways to support the work here that God is doing at Sandals Church.
Pastor Fredo Ramos:To do that, you can go to sandalschurch.com/support. Grace and peace. Thank
Morgan Teruel:you so much for tuning in today. If you want more content from the series, we have the YouTube playlist linked in the description. And if you want more information about who we are and what we do, you can go to sandalschurch.com.